Itzpapálotl (in Nahuatl "obsidian butterfly") was one of the most feared mother-goddesses of the Mexica pantheon, specifically within the Toltec culture. Cozcacuauhtli and the Trecena 1 Casa were considered patron of the day.
She was also a lady of hunting and sacrifices. It is often related to black magic, so it is usually the archetype of the wise old woman and powerful sorceresses.
Illustration of Itzpapálotl. Source: See page for author
This deity is cataloged as a Cihuateotl, that is, an incarnated female spirit who died while giving birth and who used to be honored as a fallen warrior. It is also considered one of the Tzitzimime, a group of monstrous deities that descended to earth to devour human beings during eclipses of the Sun.
Itzpapálotl belonged to the Tamoanchan kingdom, an earthly paradise inhabited by gods, which is related to the birth of humanity, but also to being the destiny of the victims of infant mortality. She was also identified as the mother of Mixcoatl, Aztec god and Toltec patron of hunting and storms, who manifested in the shape of the Milky Way.
Perhaps the reason why she is not paid much tribute is because she is a goddess of Chichimeco origin, a nomadic people little appreciated by the Aztecs. For that reason, the Aztec culture probably replaced her figure with that of her son, Mixcóatl, as the god of hunting.
Symbology
This deity is associated with nocturnality, coldness and the underground origin. As its name implies, it is strongly linked to the Rothschildia orizaba moth of the Saturniidae family, called the razor or four-mirror butterfly.
In some mythologies, the butterfly symbolizes the ghost of a lost soul and, especially, nocturnal species are often a sign of bad omen and death.
With regard to obsidian or volcanic glass, it has a strong link to the earth and the underworld. It usually represents purification through self-sacrifice and the dismemberment of victims in human sacrifices.
Obsidian lancets used to be a cult object. Items made from this material also had a link to divination or could be used as protective amulets. When this rock was polished and was as bright as a mirror, it was believed that it was the crystallized soul that had fallen from the sky.
Legends
Although this goddess is not described by the great scholars of Mexica culture, prominent researchers Bernardino de Sahagún, Diego Duran or Alfonso Caso have warned that it appears in various codices and Mexica stories.
In the Legend of the Suns part of the history of this deity associated with the underworld can be known. In the narrative, Itzpapálotl is burned and explodes into five flint knives of various colors. One of them, the second, which was white, was later used by Mixcóatl for his conquests, as a tlaquimilolli or sacred package.
According to some sources, Itzpapálotl can be transmuted from a nocturnal divinity to a heavenly one, when associated with flint. This gives it a dual character between good and evil, the underworld and heaven, just like Tezcatlipoca has.
It is said that after his death, Itzpapálotl became the celestial white stone that Mixcóatl collected to light the fire for the first time and that it contained the divine spark, energy, fire.
In the Anales de Cuauhtlican it is told how Itzpapálotl kills and eats the mimixcoa (Chichimec victims), before being shot and burned by them when they resuscitated and were led by Mixcóatl. The mimixcoa were then covered with the resulting ashes of the goddess, mainly around the eyes.
Through the Rio Codex, you can learn why she was expelled from paradise. While in the garden of delight, the goddess plucked some roses causing the tree to break, from which blood flowed.
Tonacatecutli and his enraged wife threw her together with other gods from that heavenly place and since then the thirteen that presides (the fifteenth) is considered to be unfortunate or a bad omen.
Other data can be found in the Telleriano-Remensis Codex, which details the ritual of the thirteen that she represents. During the 1st House, bad adulterous women who wanted to ask for forgiveness went to the crossroads and undressed as a sign of abandoning their evil.
Artistic representations
Tamoanchan described in the Codex Borgia. Source: This image was created with Adobe Photoshop.
The horrible appearance of Itzpapálotl is, for some scholars, evidence of its demonic origin, taking into account it is included among the creatures expelled from the sky, such as Huitzilopochtli and Tezcatlipoca. Common elements in representations of this deity are butterfly wings edged with stone knives.
In some images, the face is made up like the ladies of the Mexican court, with the characteristic white chalk. While in others the face is replaced by a skull and a sacrificial knife, instead of the nostril.
One of the most outstanding artistic manifestations was discovered in the Bourbon Codex. It can be seen with a large red ribbon that ends in a large quetzal crest. Instead of hands and feet, it has claws and wings decorated with flint.
In front of it is the Tamoanchan tree, in addition to other symbols such as a water pot, a snake, a spider and a container with a heart, all symbols of darkness and magic.
Association with animals and materials
This deity frequently appears with jaguar claws and in others an eagle. It is also often found wearing a nahualli or a hem of human teeth, common accessories of the necromancer witches.
In Nahua mythology and iconography it is related to the figure of Cihuacóatl, who was the collector of souls and protector of women who died when giving birth.
His nahual was a deer, a symbol of hunting. This goddess also shares various trappings with the divine sense of the Earth and in some hymns she is directly identified with Tlaltecuhtli, Lord of the Earth.
A clear link between Itzpapálotl and copper has also been detected, including an attire of the Tiyacacauani warriors and the clothing of the god of fire, Otontecuhtli, receive that name. The garment is made with sheets of this metal and on top is the figure of the butterfly.
References
- Miller, Mary & Karl Taube (1993). The Gods and Symbols of Ancient Mexico and the Maya: An Illustrated Dictionary of Mesoamerican Religion. London: Thames & Hudson.
- Spence, L. (2012). The Magic and Mysteries of Mexico: Or, the Arcane Secrets and Occult Lore of the Ancient Mexicans and Maya. Hardpress Publishing.
- Foundation for the Advancement of Mesoamerican Studies (FAMSI). (sf). The Borgia Group - Codex Ríos. Recovered from famsi.org
- Olivier, G. (2005). Tlantepuzilama: The Dangerous Wanderings of a Copper-toothed Deity in Mesoamerica. Nahuatl Culture Studies, 36 (036).
- Kroger, J., & Granziera, P. (2012). Aztec goddesses and Christian Madonnas: images of the divine feminine in Mexico. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd.